2021 Lexington "Gist Ranch" Santa Cruz Mountains Cabernet Sauvignon

The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Gist Ranch is so attractive right out of the gate. Picture sweet, ultra-ripe blackberries that, for some reason, you find rolling around on a forest floor—there you go! A bit of Franc (14.5%) in the blend adds lift and just the right amount of herbaceousness, but the 10.5% Merlot brings it home and keeps things plush and soft. Give it a few years in the cellar to settle in, then let it ride. (BN)

If you only read a part of this undoubtedly long and verbose staff review please know this: the deals we have on the Lexington wines from Thomas Fogarty winery are amongst the most incredible offerings I have secured in my almost 14 years with K&L. The wines are absolutely delicious across the board, and the pricing is WAY below what the quality and acclaim deserves. When we offer wines with discounts this significant the most common question I'm asked is: "is there something wrong with the wines?" The answer here is 100% NO. We have a four decade long relationship with Thomas Fogarty winery. I consider winemaker Nathan Kandler a personal friend, and have great respect for his talents in the cellar. The reason we can offer such incredible pricing on these wines is because the winery has decided to discontinue the Lexington label. In the future they will bottle the Bordeaux varietal wines using the same Thomas Fogarty label that the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir based wines are under. The winery had some excess cases they wanted to move through before the rebranding, and because of our direct relationship we have partnered with them to help out. And that's where you come in! The Lexington wines are from an estate property the Fogarty family developed in 2000. About 30 minutes south from their home estate planted in 1981, Gist Ranch sits between 1,900 and 2,400ft above the town of Los Gatos. At just 16 miles from the Pacific ocean, this site has a perfectly moderate climate for allowing long hangtimes and even ripening of Bordeaux varietals. The soils here are an ancient marine sedimentary fractured sandstone raised into the mountains by the nearby San Andreas Fault. The vineyards are high-density plantings of mostly heritage selections of Cabernet Sauvignon plus smaller parcels of Cab Franc and Merlot. The vines are meticulously farmed with organic protocols. The fruit is handled in small, block-by-block, individual fermentations, and rested in top quality French oak barriques for 18-24 months. The 2021 has the perfect combination of rich, opulent fruit, with classical varietal expression, and true Santa Cruz Mountain character and structure. Nathan judged the pick perfectly here, wines from this rugged, remote, mountainous region can be very structured and unyielding, however the fruit profile here is lush and generous but without losing it's sense of place the varietal correctness. Wild blackberry, briar patch, mulberry, cigar box, hints of high chaparral, crushed rock mineral and cedar spice. Such a satisfying wine with layer upon layer dark fruit and textural, fine tannins. Does Cabernet get any better for this price point? I think not.